Posts Tagged christmas

Out of all the things that comes up with tiny houses, the holidays might be the trickiest for tiny house folks. Even after years of living tiny, people around me still feel the need to give gifts. While it isn’t necessary, I appreciate gifts much more because people really have to think of a creative ways to gift without taking up space in my tiny house.

Today I wanted to share the top 5 gift ideas for tiny house folks.

If you are having trouble telling people what you want for the holidays, try sending them this post so they can get some ideas!

1. Experiences:

This is my absolute favorite gift to give and receive because it means that I can do something fun with that person that I care about. It could be dinner out, tickets to an event or some other adventure. I try to think of things that the person likes and often get two so that not only is it an awesome experience, but we can experience it together.

Gift idea: Use code “tiny2013″ for $50 off tickets to the Tiny House Conference click here!

2. Consumables

Next up is things that people can eat or use up. Things that after a certain amount of use is are gone. A perfect example of this is food items. We are all busy and most of us like food, so making something or buying something that person likes is a great gift. Think of things that are difficult to make or some other cause for it not being a regular thing. Other things outside of food could be candles, eco friendly bath products, fire wood.

Gift Idea: a subscription to a CSA (community support agriculture).

3. Help them pursue a dream

For those we care about, we want to see them succeed. Find out some of things that the person is working towards in their goals. Also learning about what is on people’s bucket list is another great way to get ideas of what you might be able to help them with their goals. If people ask you for what you want, you can think of things that will help you achieve your goals. The obvious thing here for this blog is how can you better achieve your goal of living in a tiny house? Get a copy of your plans made up, get that resource you’ve been eying or what about getting some one on one coaching from us here?

Gift idea: One on One coaching with the experts of The Tiny Life at our sister website – Tiny House Craftsman!

4. Something you’re already going to buy anyway.

I do this a lot, since I don’t really need much, I don’t buy much either. So when something comes up that I need to replace it or buy something new, I hold off and suggest it as a gift when others ask. For example, I am in need of new shoes, have been for a month or so, but I’ve been holding off. This way those who must have to give me a gift can and its something that I really need; Often something that will replace a worn out item.

Gift Idea: Shoes, socks, tires, etc.

5. Digital or no tangible items.

Sometimes there are gifts that take up no space at all and can be used later on. I’m thinking of gift cards, vouchers and digital downloads. A gift card to your favorite restaurant takes up next to no space, but is a great way for you to still give or receive things when you are living tiny. Other things could be itunes music, movies, or other media.

Gift Idea: Cracking The Code – Guide to building codes and zoning for tiny houses!

It’s nearly Christmas and here in Charleston we have been enjoying the festive decorations throughout the city. Living in a tiny house definitely limits traditional decorations and living the tiny life means having to tweak some holiday decor. One difference is that last year we had an 8 foot tree. That just will not work in La Casita and I have to admit I was a bit bummed about not having the space but one of my students at my school came to my rescue! He brought me the top off his twelve foot tree and placed it in a bowl of clay with a little ornament hanging on one of the branches. He came in the kitchen a couple weeks ago and said, “Here Ms. Andrea! It’s for your tiny house!” It was the sweetest gift and it fixed my tree dilemma. Now we have a Charlie Brown tree to keep things festive this holiday season!

Luckily for us, here in Charleston, the city goes to great lengths to decorate the streets. Wreaths, living trees, lights and banners are everywhere so when I feel like enjoying the season I can hop on my bike and go out to Marion Square to see the park all lit up in white lights or down King Street to enjoy 16 foot living trees placed along the shopping areas. Living in such a vibrant city is great when your living space can’t support all the holiday bells and whistles!

Since we don’t have a regular tree we’ve decided to celebrate gift giving in the style of stockings! I’ve yet to make them, which I swore I would do last week, and now with only a few days til Christmas I have work to do! Stockings were always my favorite part of Christmas morning growing up and it’s a great way to receive presents in a tiny house! Certainly helps keep things scaled down. Check out Ryan’s post about gift giving and tiny house living for more great ideas on giving or receiving this season!

In terms of indoor decoration we have Christmas lights lighting our living room and we’ve put out the cards we’ve received from family and friends. I’ll get the stockings up when I finish them and we’ve put a winter wreath on our door. It takes some adjustment to have a merry tiny house Christmas but I find it no less enjoyable than past holidays when I lived in larger dwellings. We’ve had to be willing to sacrifice a few things, like a regular tree, but when compared to my daily enjoyment of life in La Casita I don’t mind doing things a bit different during the holidays. For example, since we don’t have the space to host a party this year we are going to host a Christmas Eve bike ride! We’ll bring cookies and hot cider and enjoy the lights of the city on a tour around the downtown peninsula. We love to entertain our friends and family and while it takes a bit more creativity living in a tiny space, we’ve had just as much fun having gatherings outside our home as in and w e look forward to many more tiny life inspired holidays to come!

Your Turn!

Hey tiny house inhabitants! How do you celebrate the holidays tiny life style?

With the holiday season upon us, people get very wrapped up in the need to buy presents. Even though I don’t need things and for the most part I don’t want for much, it’s hardwired into their brains that they have to give me something. So today I wanted to share some of the things you can do when it comes to the gift giving season.

I think the first thing to do is long before the holiday season, share with those who might give you gifts that your lifestyle and priorities have shifted to have fewer items. You can frame this in the context of environmentalism, reduced-consumerism, simple living, minimalism; however you do this, people are going to be curious why, so be prepared to have a conversation. It’s important for them to understand that there is a greater purpose and/or goal behind your request, this helps gain buy in. Now we Tiny House folks often can’t shut up about our dream Tiny House, so this isn’t usually an issue.

Next thing to do is consider the things that you really do need throughout the year, then consider if you could hold off getting it now and instead suggest it as a gift for the holidays. A great example in my own life is work shirts. I wear polo’s to work, but I only have 4 (I only go into an office 3 days a week), so they wear out with more frequent washings. I was about to retire my polo’s when I realized it was getting close to the holidays and I decided to wait and ask for new shirts.

So where possible try to time things so things that you truly do need, but what about beyond that? Being that I don’t need a whole lot, I find that there more people to exchange gifts with than I have needs. This is where I ask for experiences or consumables.

The great thing about these two things is that they don’t take up space (or not for long). Experiences can be having them take you out to dinner, go see a movie, a weekend vacation, go on some adventure with them, have them cook you a meal and enjoy it together. The experience will be something that you both will value so much more than anything you can buy at the store.

The second thing is consumables. There are items like foods, drinks, candy, etc. that you can use, but they aren’t going to have to be stored forever. If you want to take it a step further, ask them to take into consideration the packaging of the item.

Great examples of consumables are baked goods. If they are a wine or beer drinker, consider wine/beer of the month clubs. If they are meat eaters some mail order steaks; for the vegetarians/vegans/raw folks consider local vendors that prepare meals to go that align with their food preferences. Buying someone a share in a CSA (community supported agriculture). A great place to start is with your local farmers market.

So those are just a few tips on how you might bring in the New Year and handle the gift giving season while still balancing it with living The Tiny Life.

Your Turn!

How to do you talk with other about reducing your possessions during the holiday season?